These are tough times. People are scared. Some are handling the
stress better than others. There are some very matter-of-fact attitudes. "This
has been going on in the rest of the world for years, now itís our turn" they
say, as they continue planning their vacation to Hawaii.

In general, this is not the case. There is stress bordering on
hysteria among many people. How are you suppose to stick to your routine, and
even care about your budget when you think your world is coming to an end?

All of a sudden, that balance on your Master Card has diminished
in itís importance. The family budget has taken on less importance. Shopping has
re surged as a way to tell ourselves that things are normal and has taken on a
comfort role.

Many of us are having medical problems, ranging from stress
disorders (new and recurring), to nightmares, ulcers, and many of the other
things that happen to the human body when under duress.

How are we suppose to keep to our goals and even care about
money now? It was hard enough before. Now, we may feel frozen or overcome by
malaise. What are we to do?

I think that there are some important things to consider. First
of all, try and calm your nerves. As horrible as the incidents were on September
11th, remember that it took 8 years between attacks on the World Trade Center.

We may have been "sleeping" in those years, but we are not now!
All the intelligence and technology of the United States is now focused on our
defense (as well as the rest of the world).

Not only that, but our people are now fully aware of potential
problems. Look what happened when a deranged man made a scene on an airliner.
The passengers brought him down. It is almost a certainty that skyjacking will
not happen again.

As far as the anthrax scare, while it is troublesome, it does
not have the potential to hurt on any kind of a large scale. There are 280
million people in the USA. Anthrax may be produced, but it, as well as other
harmful substances can not be produced on any kind of large scale, nor delivered
to a great amount of people.

Anthrax an incredibly hard agent to transmit in a pathogenic
amount. Although people talk about using Cipro to treat it, almost any good
antibiotic will do--penicillin or tetracycline, for example. The only reason
Cipro is recommended is the manufacturers of Cipro were the only ones who went
through the bother of being approved to treat anthrax--which is now paying off
big time.

Also, the attacks are only aimed at prominent persons or places.
Unless you are a prominent person, work for a major newspaper or company, or the
post office, you are not going to receive a letter containing anthrax or be
exposed to it.

Per my brother, here is the "Ben Laden cave test". If your name
or workplace would not recognized by someone in Ben Ladder's mountain cave
headquarters, you are not going to be the target of an anthrax letter.

All the technology of the United States if now going to be
applied to the mass production of equipment that will sterilize our mail.
Whatever is left "up their sleeve" will be dealt with...until we deal with them
and they are no more!

Probably the biggest threat is car bombs. Again, most of us are
not in potential target areas. Greatest precautions are being taken at all
potential targets.

We have done a lot of damage to Ben Laden's ability to
coordinate any more attacks on any kind of scale. If he tried to communicate
with his followers, we will find him, and he will meet his well deserved fate.

The bottom line is while our perception of our world turned
upside down in a horrifying way on Sep. 11th, life is going to go on. While we
now live in a world with heightened awareness of terror, our lives are going to
go on.

Is the quality of our live any less important to us now? Are our
children less important? What about our values, dreams and goals?

Money may have moved a little lower on the totem pole, but it is
a necessary factor in our lives. We have lost some control over other factors in
our lives. Letís not loose control of our money!

Money rebuilds buildings. Money provides for medical care and
research. Money educates our children. Money buys food. We do not love money. It
is a tool we use for the running of our households, and helping with the
important choices in our lives. Without sufficient money, our choices are often
limited.

I write this article for myself as much as for you. I, too, have
been frozen. I have been affected mentally. We just canít afford to let this
affect us.

The person I talked about at the beginning of this article is a
friend of mine. I admire her greatly. She is a nurse, and deals with death and
dying every day.

We need to be more like her. Doctors canít do their work if they
bleed for the patient. We canít function if we can not let go of our grief from
the events of September 11th.

I urge you to remember you too have a job to do. It is raising
your families, and providing for their welfare. It is one of the most important
jobs in the world. Always remember that!

Donít let
go of your goals, plans, and dreams. Don't lose control of your money.
Donít let the evil in the world overcome righteous endeavors. You and
your family are too important to let that happen.